Which of the following is true of the trait theories of personality quizlet?

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Chapter 13
McCrae and Costa's Five-Factor Trait Theory

1. Explain briefly how factor analysis is used to measure personality traits.

Answer:

A. Factor analysis is a mathematical technique for reducing a large number of observations to a cluster of closely related variables (or traits). Both Cattell and McCrae and Costa used factor analysis to measure personality traits or factors.
B. Factor analysts determine intercorrelations among a large variety of measures taken from many people. Some of these intercorrelations reveal scores that tend to cluster together, suggesting a factor or unit of personality.
C. Next, analysts determine the extent to which each individual score contributes to the various factors. Correlations of scores with factors are called factor loadings.
D. For mathematically derived factors to have psychological meaning, the axes on which the scores are plotted are rotated into a mathematical relationship with each other. The oblique rotation method was advocated by Cattell; the orthogonal rotation method was used by McCrae and Costa, the Five-Factor theorists.
E. Traits generated through factor analysis may be either unipolar or bipolar. Unipolar traits are scaled from zero to some large amount, and bipolar traits extend from one pole to another with zero as a midpoint (i.e., extraversion and introversion).
F. Cattell's oblique rotation resulted in 16 first-order traits, whereas McCrae and Costa's orthogonal rotation yielded only five general traits, or the Five-Factor Theory.

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2. Elaborate on the Five-Factor Model of trait theory.

Answer:

A. The Five-Factor Model is a result of an evolution of the factor analysis method that began with Allport and was continued by Cattell in the 1940s. Costa and McCrae continued their work of factor analyzing major personality inventories until they reached a core set of five personality traits.
B. Costa and McCrae agreed with Eysenck that personality traits are bipolar and follow a bell-shaped distribution. Most people score near the middle of each trait, with only a few people scoring at the extremes. The two strongest and most ubiquitous traits are neuroticism (N) and extraversion (E). Neuroticism reflects relative levels of emotions, and extraversion refers to relative levels of social gregariousness.
C. The third factor, openness to experience, distinguishes people who prefer variety and diverse experiences from those who gain comfort in familiar, conventional, and traditional things.
D. The Agreeableness Scale distinguishes trusting, generous, and good-natured people from those who are more suspicious, unfriendly, and critical of other people.
E. The fifth factor—conscientiousness—describes people who are ordered, controlled, ambitious, and self-disciplined.
People who score low on this factor tend to be disorganized, negligent, lazy, and aimless, and they often lack perseverance.

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3. Define and explain the units of the Five-Factor Theory and how behavior is predicted by an understanding of three central or core components.

Answer:

In the personality theory of McCrae and Costa, behavior is predicted by an understanding of three central or core components and three peripheral ones. The three central components include (1) basic tendencies, (2) characteristic adaptations, and (3) self-concept.
A. Basic Tendencies: As defined by McCrae and Costa (1996), basic tendencies are one of the central components of personality, along with characteristic adaptations, self-concept, biological bases, objective biography, and external influences. McCrae and Costa defined basic tendencies as the universal raw material of personality capacities and dispositions that are generally inferred rather than observed. Basic tendencies may be inherited, imprinted by early experience, or modified by disease or psychological intervention, but at any given period in an individual's life, they define the individual's potential and direction.
B. Characteristic Adaptations: Core components of the Five-Factor Theory include the characteristic adaptations, that is, acquired personality structures that develop as people adapt to their environment. The principal difference between basic tendencies and characteristic adaptations is their flexibility. Whereas basic tendencies are quite stable, characteristic adaptations can be influenced by external influences, such as acquired skills, habits, attitudes, and relationships that result from the interaction of individuals with their environment.
C. Self-Concept: McCrae and Costa (2003) explain that self-concept is actually a characteristic adaptation, but it gets its own box because it is such an important adaptation. McCrae and Costa (1996) wrote that it "consists of knowledge, views, and evaluations of the self, ranging from miscellaneous facts of personal history to the identity that gives a sense of purpose and coherence to life." The beliefs, attitudes, and feelings one has toward oneself are characteristic adaptations in that they influence how one behaves in a given circumstance.

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